Program areas at INWCF
Launchnw: in may, Innovia announced an economic and community vitality initiative, launchnw, which boldly aims to remove financial barriers to post-high school education and vocational training for students in eastern Washington and north Idaho. Using a promise scholarship as incentive, launchnw brings together partners from all sectors of the community behind this common goal, supporting and expanding integrated supports from cradle to career. Work for the initiative is already underway in spokane county, with surrounding counties and communities able to join in a phased rollout over the coming years. 5% campaign: people in eastern Washington and north Idaho are expected to leave $42 billion by 2029 to beneficiaries up their death, according to an Innovia funded wealth-transfer study. In 2020, we launched the 5% campaign to capture 5% of that future wealth approximately $2 billion into philanthropic investments that will increase the financial resiliency of local communities. In 2022, wave 3 of the campaign connected regional professional advisors and nonprofit leaders with engaging experts on planned giving and endowment building, providing further tools and resources to community leaders through a series of free webinars and networking opportunities.leadership summit: Innovia hosted its leadership summit and annual reception as a two-day combined event in may 2022, convening over 300 nonprofit, business and community leaders from throughout eastern Washington and north Idaho to engage with a series of powerful speakers and community-building opportunities. Important themes from this event included investigations of our current economic climate, how to have courageous conversations around racial healing, transfer of leadership in communities, going 'all in' for children, the power of small moments, and a panel discussion around Innovia's launchnw initiative.leadership councils: leadership councils play a vital role in the Foundation's work by providing representation from throughout our 20-county service area. Council members serve as ambassadors and advisors to Innovia Foundation, and advocate for philanthropy in general. Each of Innovia's 10 leadership councils is comprised of 15 local community members who serve as trusted voices and engaged representatives from the communities where they live and work. Our council volunteers bring on-the-ground experience from a variety of sectors including education, health care, business, nonprofit management, elected offices, tribal governments and more. The councils meet regularly to keep the Foundation educated about the needs and opportunities in their communities and help leverage the power of philanthropy for local impact.cultivating potential scholarship program: with support from a generous donor, Innovia Foundation continued the cultivating potential scholarship, which provides tuition assistance and mentorship for youth seeking to rise above obstacles that may be preventing them from reaching their full potential. In addition to financial assistance, students participate in life skills training sessions, explore career opportunities and benefit from peer support that results from the cohort experience.
Foundation-directed grantmaking: Innovia Foundation manages other funds established by generous donors to address the unique opportunites and challenges in our region. Over 140 individual and family funds are used to support the Foundation's five impact areas of health & wellbeing, economic opportunity, education and youth development, arts & culture and quality of life. Innovia Foundation evaluates organizations and then makes grants to best reflect the intended purpose of the funds.
Donor-directed grantmaking: Innovia Foundation's mission is to ignite generosity that transforms lives and communities. With over 485 individual, family and corporate funds, this area of investment reflects the grantmaking directed by donors to support a broad range of community interests primarily in our region and Washington state and also extending nationally and internationally.
Scholarships: these funds support student educational achievement. Over 65 funds are used to support students from the inland northwest with scholarships to attend colleges, universities or vocational schools in the region and beyond.